Saturday, December 31, 2016

Hey furfriends! It's that time again, at the end of every year I like to do a year in a glance post just to see what kinds of fun we had and to see how far we've come since last year.
I hope you enjoy it!

January -

Our First Canicross Trip!
Dz Dog Dad wrote his second guest post for our blog, and this month we did our first canicross adventure with the pups! They did great for their first time. We also enjoyed some snowshoeing and played reindeer by pulling a sled containing our niece and nephew.

January was also Dante's first flyball tournament! A sport we've sadly had to quit since our move, did you know their are NO flyball teams in Southern Oregon? I'd have to start my own team, which isn't out of the question but building a house is our current priority. Hmmmm...maybe a 2018 goal?

This month was the first month into our investigation of Dante's nose. It all started with a bad bloody nose that wouldn't quit for several hours. This led to a doctors appointment, which led to xrays and eventually a specialist. We also started prepping our house to sell it due to Dz Dog Dad's new job!

This is our first year at our new home and address, our new mailman was laughing at me! He said our dogs get more love than most people he knows! Thank you furfriends for all of the love!And for making the mail staff jealous of all the beeeeaaautiful cards we received. Thank you!

Thursday, December 22, 2016

I have been such a good boy! Just so long as you overlook that one incident where I freaked mom out...I couldn't help but explore the woods on my own, sis and I were having an adventure! Anyways, it was only the once and I swear it won't happen again.

Monday, December 19, 2016

Ziva here. I've been thinking about this year a lot, about whether I've been a good girl or a bad girl. I know last year I promised to be a good girl, but since I know Dante is going to tattle I figured I'd just come clean and hope that you'd go easy on me. I have a confession to make, being bad is fun!

Friday, December 16, 2016

"There are no affiliate links on our blog, we do not get paid for getting you to click on anything."

Can you believe it's almost Christmas? These last couple months have just zoomed by for us!
This month Chewy sent us "Stella & Chewy's Meal Mixer Super Blends!" In the Duck, Duck, Goose recipe.

One of the recent issues we've been having with Dante and Ziva is a lack of interest in eating their normal food. We feed a rotational diet and they've had this one before and liked it but aren't really into it right now. Normally I can return and swap bags if they don't like something, but this time I figured I was safe and dumped it into our airtight dog food canister and threw the bag away! So we're stuck finishing this bag.

Wednesday, December 14, 2016

We seem to be on an upswing finally and gaining traction on all of our puppy ailments!

Dante's Nose - The one thing we've learned from this debacle? Any future dogs of ours that are missing teeth, will be CT scanned to make sure the teeth aren't still in there!Let me remind you that the x-ray we did last February didn't find the tooth.

Dante is already improving now that the horrible tooth has been removed from his nasal passageways!

His daily sneezing ritual has majorly lessened, he used to have body rocking sneezes in the morning like clockwork. It was so regular in fact that I'd try to rush him out the door to, "Go Potty" just so that he'd sneeze outside instead of in our tiny little home. And, that horrible smell is gone!! Hooray!!

The new concern of our specialist is that part of the bone is infected - most likely due to how long it took us to get to the root of the issue. She's referring us to an Oral Surgeon specialist who is going to look at his CT Scan and decide what to do. We now have two different options to deal with.

#1 - Let the azithromycin antibiotic do its magic, and hopefully purge the infection from the bone.

Tuesday, December 6, 2016

The specialist started out with the CT scan just like she said she would, and guess what she found?

Dante's missing tooth! This problem may have been going on for far longer than we imagined, when we first adopted him three years ago we had assumed that his missing tooth had maybe been broken and removed before we got him. Turns out it just never came in the way it was supposed to, and the xray that we did last february couldn't see it!

As put so kindly by a friend of ours...we've been dealing with this for far too long. Like I mentioned in our last post we're still dealing with Dante's nose! For our new readers this has been quite an unpleasant issue for us.

After our vet did the initial x-rays we began treatment for the infection with antibiotics based on the conclusions of the lab work and we were sent to a specialist. We did 6 weeks worth of these antibiotics and it seemed to have worked, unfortunately a few months later the "bad smell" came back.

Mommy Instincts - Trust them!

I had been noticing this "bad smell" for a while before Dante sprouted the bloody nose, turns out it was the smell of infection. I didn't trust myself though and since no one else could smell what I was smelling I just shrugged it off as me being silly. After the round of antibiotics we thought we'd had success, until a few months later the smell came back. So back to the specialist, and she gave me two options.

Tuesday, November 29, 2016

Ziva here...Don't mind me...just snuggling with mom to help her feel better. Mom realized she never updated our furfriends on Dante's cut pad and my nail. You can read more about that incident HERE.

Mom had to take me back to the dogtor, she said my nail is growing weird and doesn't seem to be healing. The dogtor is worried that I might have an infection under it, probably cause I won't stop licking it and ripping off the bandage mom puts on my foot - doesn't she know how annoying foot bandages are though? Anyways, now I have to take pills with each meal (antibiotics) to see if the nail will get better. So far mom says she can't tell the difference. I don't mind the pills though, mom usually hides them in cream cheese. I know they are there but don't tell her that! Sometimes she doesn't hide them well enough and I spit them out, this is my strategy to get a second round of cream cheese! I'm a smart girl!

As for Dante's pad? It healed up really nice mom and dad did a good job and he doesn't mind the foot wrapping. I tried telling him that he could chew it off but he just grumbled at me and left it on.

Dz Dog Mom Here!

If Ziva would leave the bandages alone I bet her nail would heal quicker, we have about 1 more week on the antibiotics with her. I can't tell if it's getting better or not, but at least it isn't getting any worse. If this doesn't work the vet wants to check for a fungal/bacterial infection under the nail and maybe do a biopsy, but I think she'd benefit just having the nail removed and letting it start over fresh. OUCH!

Anyways, wish us luck! Looks like we also need to readdress Dante's nose issue. I'll have an update on that later.

Friday, November 18, 2016

Dante and Ziva are generally snobs when it comes to dog treats..if it's not cheese, freeze dried or meat jerky they really aren't into it. Crunchy treats don't normally hold much appeal to these guys. UNTIL NOW.

Tuesday, November 15, 2016

Dante's most favoritist game in the ENTIRE world is to play tug. He'll drive you crazy if it means that he can get a quick game in. In fact sometimes I'll be standing outside minding my own business and then boom! A slobbery toy knocks me in the legs...

Yup, that's the one..

When we first adopted Dante all we did was play tug, and we realized the game seemed to be wearing us out more than it was him. And he didn't play fetch.

One day the hubby saw a golden opportunity, fetch and tug! He took Dante's kong toy, dropped a natural rope through the hole and tied it off!

Friday, November 4, 2016

So for starters, we have internet again!! HOORAY! Now we can catch up on all of our fun - and not so fun, adventures!

Ok, so back to Dante being a big baby. I can prove it!Evidence #1
At this point we're pushing three weeks ago that Ziva broke another nail, her first broken nail was a few months ago and that one has since healed. But this one she broke differently, to put it into perspective and to give you a mental picture.. somehow she managed to not just break this nail, but completely bust it! Unfortunately we've dealt with this rather frequently with her - Accident Prone Puppy HERE. I guess the one good thing though is that at this point we know how to care for broken nails, and when to call it quits and go to the vet.

It's not as bad as it looks! It's actually healing quite nicely.

After two weeks Ziva's nail was looking really good, we were keeping it clean, soaking it nightly and changing the bandage, and we weren't allowing her to run around like a maniac. But two weeks into it the nail was still causing her some discomfort and she wasn't wanting to put much pressure on her paw. So we called our new local vet and decided to give him a try, he was recommended by one of our nice new neighbors and I always love recommendations. What a dream! Our new vet and his staff were calm, patient, and had great bedside manners with Ziva!

Let me know if you need a good Southern Oregon Veterinarian!

Of course it helps that she's a pitty princess and she knows it! She is so trusting of humans she's always been easy to work with at the vet's office. So our new vet took a look at the nail, and she was a superstar, we ended up having her sedated to attempt to get the nail off - NOPE it's on tight! But he did clip it closer. And then he sent us home with instructions to keep up our soaking/wrapping/and light playtime. At this point we're just hoping it falls off.

Evidence #2

Ziva let us fiddle with her nail long before we brought her into the vet. And by fiddle I mean use a cotton swab to gently clean out the dirt underneath the nail - OUCH! It hurt but some patience and lots of love got the job done.

Back To The Big Baby...

We've been doing a lot of building on our new property, you can check out those fun stories on my other blog: TwoPitsInaPod.Wordpress.com

As we've been building we've been working really hard to maintain a clean ground and working area both for us and the dogs since they like to be involved. We pick up nails immediately after we drop them, clean up, and put away everything when we're done for the day.

Well, somehow Dante managed to slice his metacarpal pad on his front right paw. It's a super clean slice, so it couldn't have been a nail and we've been scratching our heads ever since trying to figure out how he did it! Our best guess is that he managed to cut it open on a sharp rock because we do have a lot of those around here.

Evidence #3

You would have thought we were killing him when we tried to soak his paw! Between the yips, moans, groans, grumbles of some growling.. Lots of treats and patience later, we finally managed to soak his paw, clean it with some bactine, and bandage it up slathered in neosporin.

Poor big baby, thankfully we're onto day three and things have gotten much easier. I was even able to bandage his paw without Dz Dog Dad's help last night! #ThePowerofPositiveTraining Lots of cooing at him, treats, rubbing his face super slowly while soaking his paw, and quiet talking we got it done no yips, yipes, grunts, or growls about it folks!

Whew! This mama is getting her first aid practice in for sure! All these injuries recently, even Dz Dog Dad had to get in on the fun and managed to slice a finger with a utility blade this week! (He's ok!)

Monday, October 31, 2016

So normally we get all dressed up so that we can greet the trick or treaters and pass out candy. I've always loved seeing the little princesses, pirates, and superheros!

This year is a bit different though, it's the first year we aren't passing out candy. And to be honest I think even if we bought a bag we'd have to eat it all ourselves! Living out in the hills in the country I don't think we'll see any kiddos.

This move has been really amazing for us, we LOVE Southern Oregon! Last week Ziva went to a local Farmers Market with me, their are many different Farmer's Markets down here so if you miss one you can always hit a different one for some fresh fruits, vegetables, and homemade goodies. The focus down here is on healthy eating, organic, and local.

We also love that many places are dog friendly! It's often not posted so you want to call ahead and ask rather than assume, but we've been pleasantly surprised at how many places we've found. Including a local pumpkin patch!

Pumpkin Hunting!

Being a rather large farm I was a bit worried the dogs wouldn't be invited but dogs are allowed on leash! They had food stands, some local vendors, a pumpkin launching station, tractor rides, a crazy cow train (Not Actual Cows!) the sitting buckets were painted to look like cows and they were pulled by a crazy fast ATV thing. This farm also hosts a big corn maze, hay bale maze for the smaller kiddos, and a GIANT pumpkin patch where you can go pumpkin hunting!

Feeling rather brave I decided to take both dogs out at once, I say brave because we've still not settled into a good training routine recently. Did you know country life is busy? Their is just never a shortage of work to be done.

Setting Up For Success

Bringing a giant bag of stinky treats, and attaching both dogs to the same leash for easier control we set out to find a pumpkin! Despite the low grumbles of the tractor rides, the explosive bangs and thuds of pumpkin launching, the smell of fresh kettle corn, and the kids squealing in delight on the different play structures the dogs did so great!

#BreedAmbassadors
Despite all of the noise Dante and Ziva were perfect champs! The pumpkin blasting was super loud but didn't bother them at all, and though they got a bit excited with all of the sights, sounds, and smells they listened great! We got tons of compliments on their behavior, I think people got a kick out of seeing me walking the two of them on the same leash held by just one hand with a pumpkin under my other arm. Training really does pay off!

Dante of course had to dress in his pumpkin colors, he looks so good in orange!

And being a bit on the cooler side, Ziva was sporting her pink hoodie for the occasion. Her red collar keeps making people think she's a boy! So we're back to sporting more pink, which is my happy color so i'm more than willing to pick up more!

#ChewyInfluencer
Not having a full kitchen I'm a bit limited on what I can bake, but that doesn't mean we're sitting this year out. Big thanks to Chewy for sending us a yummy pumpkin treat to try!

Weruva Pumpkin Patch Up!

I love spoiling Dante and Ziva, and what better way to get the pups in the holiday spirit than to share in some pumpkiny fun!

Did you know Pumpkin is good for dogs?

Pumpkin is high in fiber, low in fat and cholesterol, and contains healthy beta carotene, magnesium, potassium, iron, zinc, and vitamins A and C.

Pumpkin also helps if your dog has an upset tummy, the fiber in pumpkin acts as a binding solution during digestion and can help if your pup has diarrhea.

Weruva Pumpkin Patch Up is available in two sizes: 1.05 oz for $7.44 & 2.80 oz pouches for $11.76 each coming in a case of 12. Yum! And it only has two ingredients, pumpkin and water for processing! You can get yours at Chewy.com

Thank you Chewy For the Yummy Pumpkin!
Dz Dogs only supports products that we have tried and enjoyed!

Monday, October 17, 2016

In case you didn't hear, the Pacific Northwest was supposed to get hit by quite the storm! It definitely hit the Oregon Coast but it wasn't at all the magnitude that the media was crowing it was going to be. And here in Southern Oregon was more of the same. The news forcasted that we would have winds up to 40 mph. And while we can attest to the fact that it was a giant bucket load of rain, it certainly wasn't as windy as they had predicted.

Friday, October 7, 2016

We've finally entered that "next phase" and moved onto our own property! The dogs are of course in love with all of the room to run!

Cheers!! All our patience is starting to pay off!

Unfortunately in regards to that "room to run" we don't have fences yet. We've been spending quite a bit of time working on our property prepping it for the day our permits come through, the dogs have been doing great staying with me and staying out of the tree line. We're trying to teach them that the tree line is the boundary - that's as far as they are allowed to go.

Well, on Monday we were trying to beat the rain. We finally have water at our property so we could move, but we were racing the giant black rain clouds in the sky. So after we moved our trailer onto the property we had a bunch of reorganizing and site setting to do. Dante and Ziva were in the way in the trailer and they were playing so well in the yard that I left the door wide open and proceeded to repack the trailer for living. After a few min it occurred to me that I couldn't hear their collars so I went to check on them.

"Hey Sweetheart! Are the dogs with you?" - Dz Dog Dad was working on our wellhouse. "No..."

Uh oh...and then a few profanities spewed out. Sprinting across the property we quickly began calling and calling the dogs. They were gone. Shit!! "Get the car and go up the road!" I hollered at Dz Dad, while I took off in the woods. Heart dropping and panic starting to set in.

After a few more desperate calls Dante can running up the hill towards me. Hollering back at Dz Dad I told him, "They're down here!!"

I sent Dante to Dad while I kept on my path through the woods heading in the direction Dante had come from since they are never far apart. I could finally hear her, crashing through the brush. She came back, THANK DOGGY FOR ALL THAT RECALL PRACTICE!

Needless to say...they have lost their unsupervised privileges and from now on when we are working outside they get to be tethered until we get their dog run built.

And thanks to the poison oak I know they ran through, they both got cold soapy baths in the rain behind our trailer before I would let them inside.

Sometimes even your trustworthy dogs do stupid things, afterall..they are just dogs. Moral of the story? I should have kept watching them.

Wednesday, October 5, 2016

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Oh man! September just ZOOMED by us! Big thank you to Chewy for sending us such an awesome product to review!

Dante and Ziva were sooo excited to get their box, they could hardly wait for dinner! Dante *aka..."drool monster"* starts giving me eyes and creating massive drool puddles when he knows it's for him.

We normally feed our dogs kibbles, but I like giving them canned food for special occasions:

Stuffing & Freezing into Kong Toys

Fun Food Topper for their normal kibbles

Extra Calories for long adventure days (long hikes, snowshoeing, etc.)

Just because!

Wellness Core Grain Free

Wellness Core is a favorite brand of ours, their food is made without fillers, no meat by-products, no artificial colors/flavors/or preservatives, no corn/wheat/or soy! NO grains, and contains healthy ingredients!

Four Paws Way Way Up for this food!! I think Dante has a new favorite!

You can buy your own Wellness Core at Chewy.com in a case of 12 cans for $28.99. Each can is 12.5 ounces and if you autoship you can save 5%! We love Chewy, everything we've ever ordered has come quickly and well packed! Thanks Chewy!

Saturday, September 17, 2016

We're so excited to announce that we closed on our property! To catalog this next chapter in our lives I've started a blog dedicated to following our journey as we build our dream home. I hope you check it out!

Why two pits? Well you could look at it a couple ways... two humans to pit in a pod...errr camper trailer, two "pits" in a pod in the literal sense as in dogs, or a rather cuter version of "two peas in a pod" myself and my cute hubby.

This is the story of a family. A family about to embark *emphasis on the bark!* on a new adventure! This blog will be about us documenting all of our silly adventures, misadventures, the stages of our home building adventure, and life inside a small RV with two full size dogs.

Two Humans, Two Pups, One RV.
Living Big, While Living Small!

DzDogs.com is going to remain dedicated to the pups, their fun filled adventures, training tips, nutrition, and product reviews.

Friday, September 16, 2016

I was talking to a friend this morning and the topic of a "cup half full" or a "cup half empty" came up in conversation. And I realized that I am definitely a realist, rather than "half empty" or "half full" the thought that popped into my brain is - well is the cup being filled or drank? What's going on with that cup?

We've been homeless since May! Can you believe it? I can. Dante and Ziva have been super troopers though! Where personally I've struggled with frustration they've been happy campers - in a very literal sense.

Happy Camper #1

Happy Camper #2

Thank doggy for flexible dogs! In the very beginning they just thought it was one big party. After our home sold we temporarily moved in with my parents (Doggy Disneyland HERE) while we figured where we were going to live in Southern Oregon. We changed from purchasing a house to deciding to build one (because no homes were available, it's a HOT market down here!). We then had some back and forth with a seller over their property before we finally had a sale agreement.

Friday, August 26, 2016

Snapping a few pictures and enjoying the scenery, when boom! Dante started jumping sideways.

It was just thankfully just one bee, and he didn't have much of a reaction other than some swelling.

But guess what I carry in my pack? A bite and sting kit!

I picked up a couple of these kits because we were moving into a rattlesnake area. And while I know how to use it and have done a few practice runs I have never actually used it.

It worked great!

Dz Dog Dad was surprised that I was able to get suction on Dante over his fur, generally you want to shave the area first. But I definitely got a good seal over the sting, and voila! No more lump on the poor boy.

If your dog gets stung watch them carefully, some dogs are just as allergic as humans are to bees. And a sting in the mouth or throat can constrict breathing and may need a veterinarian trip.

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About Us

Dogs, positive dog training methods, inspiring healthy animal relations, and busting myths about bully breeds are things that we are passionate about. As a family we foster, train, and play flyball!

We would like to encourage others to really research breeds before getting a dog, a dog it a lifetime commitment of 10+ years and should not be done in the "spur of the moment". We love our furbabies! Dante & Ziva are both rescues working hard to change breed stereotypes and melt hearts.

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